Ryan Day (born 23 March 1980) is a Welsh professional snooker player. He is a prolific break-builder, having compiled over 450 century breaks during his career, including four maximum breaks. He is a three-time World Championship quarter-finalist, has been ranked at no. 6 in the world and has won four ranking tournaments.

Career

Early career

Day was born in Pontycymer, Bridgend (county borough), Bridgend. A top amateur, he reached the final of the IBSF Championship in China in November 1998 but lost on the final black. Day began his professional career by playing Challenge Tour (snooker), UK Tour in 1998, at the time the second-level professional tour. He was named Young Player of Distinction of the season 2000/2001 by the World Professional Billiards and Snooker Association (WPBSA). He won the 2001 Masters Qualifying Event, Benson & Hedges Championship. With this win, he qualified for the 2002 Masters (snooker), 2002 Masters, where he defeated Dave Harold, before losing 0–6 to Stephen Hendry. He also won the Challenge Tour (snooker), WPBSA Challenge Tour in the 2001/2002 season and was named WPBSA Newcomer of the Year in 2002. Due to problems with his liver in 2003, his results suffered badly. In 2004, however, he qualified for the 2004 World Snooker Championship, World Snooker Championship and he led John Higgins 9–7 in the first round, becoming the first player to score three in his first Crucible Theatre, Crucible match, but missed a pink in the 17th frame that would have left Higgins needing a snooker to stay in the tournament. Higgins went on to win the frame and the next two for the match. As some consolation, Higgins commented that Day was "going to be a top player for many years to come".

2005–2011

Day reached the quarter-finals of his home tournament, the 2005 Welsh Open (snooker), 2005 Welsh Open defeating Ali Carter and Steve Davis along the way. He finished this season ranked 33, but as Quinten Hann did not participate in any events, Day was always among the top 32 seeds, meaning one less qualifying match than he would otherwise have faced. Back at the Crucible in 2006 World Snooker Championship, 2006, he beat Joe Perry (snooker player), Joe Perry 10–3 in the first round and led Ronnie O'Sullivan 9–7 in the second round before losing 10–13. He narrowly missed reaching the top 16 of the rankings as a result. The Snooker world rankings 2006/2007, 2006/2007 season was the most successful of his career up till then. Day reached the quarter-finals of the 2006 Northern Ireland Trophy and was runner up in the 2007 Malta Cup, losing 4–9 to Shaun Murphy. That year's performance saw him ranked 16 in the world for the Snooker world rankings 2007/2008, 2007/2008 season, one place higher than in the previous year. As a member of the Top 16, he automatically qualified for tournaments. Day's 2007/2008 season started with an appearance in the final of the 2007 Shanghai Masters, Shanghai Masters; Day led his practise partner Dominic Dale 6–2 after the first session, but eventually succumbed to a 6–10 defeat. After failing to progress past the last 16 in the next three tournaments, he reached the semi-finals of the 2008 China Open (snooker), China Open, beating Matthew Stevens, Ken Doherty and Mark Williams (snooker player), Mark Williams before he was beaten by Stephen Maguire 5–6, denying him a place in the final. Day made it through to the quarter-finals of the 2008 World Snooker Championship, World Championship for the first time in his career by beating Irishman Michael Judge 10–6 and the 2007 World Snooker Championship, defending champion John Higgins 13–9 in one of the best wins of his career, before losing 7–13 to Stephen Hendry. His consistent performances took him up to 8th place in the rankings. Day reached the final of the 2008 Grand Prix (snooker), 2008 Grand Prix where he lost to John Higgins, defeating Ricky Walden, Mark Selby, Jamie Cope and Ali Carter. The year ended on a disappointing note when he lost in the first round at the 2008 UK Championship, UK Championship to Matthew Stevens. He again reached the World Championship quarter-finals in 2009 World Snooker Championship, 2009, before losing 11–13 to Mark Allen (snooker player), Mark Allen. However, he continued to move up the rankings, climbing two places to number 6, the highest ranked player not to have won a ranking event. A disappointing 2009–10 snooker season, 2009–10 season in which he reached only one quarter-final (in the 2010 Welsh Open (snooker), Welsh Open), culminated in an 8–10 first round defeat in the 2010 World Snooker Championship, World Championship to Mark Davis (snooker player), Mark Davis. This continued into the next season where he made a number of early exits which meant that at the first revision under the new ranking system he dropped out of the top 16, down to number 20.

2011/2012 season

Day qualified for five of the eight ranking tournaments during the 2011–12 snooker season, 2011–12 season, but lost in the first round in four of them. His best performance came at the end of the season in the biggest event on the tournament calendar, the 2012 World Snooker Championship, World Championship. He came back from 3–7 down in his qualifying match against Gerard Greene to win 10–8, to set up a first round match with China's number 1, Ding Junhui. Day produced another comeback, this time from trailing 6–9 to win the last four frames and advance to the second round. There he beat fellow qualifier Cao Yupeng 13–7 and held a 5–2 lead in the early stages of his quarter-final match against compatriot Matthew Stevens. However, he suffered a migraine at the start of the next session and went on to lose 11 consecutive frames to exit the tournament 5–13. Day finished the season ranked world number 30.

2012/2013 season

Day lost in qualifying for the opening ranking event of the 2012–13 snooker season, 2012–13 season the 2012 Wuxi Classic, Wuxi Classic 0–5 to Robert Milkins. He was then beaten in the second round of the 2012 Australian Goldfields Open, Australian Goldfields Open and the 2012 Shanghai Masters, Shanghai Masters, 3–5 to Matthew Selt and 0–5 to John Higgins respectively. Day was defeated 3–6 by Neil Robertson in the opening round of the 2012 International Championship, International Championship, but then came perhaps the best result of his season at the 2012 UK Championship, UK Championship. He beat Ding Junhui 6–4 in a high quality first round encounter, before letting a 3–0 lead against world number two Mark Selby slip to lose 4–6. Day played in nine of the ten minor-ranking Players Tour Championship 2012/2013, Players Tour Championship events during the season with his best results being two quarter-final defeats to be ranked 32nd on the Order of Merit, just outside the top 26 who qualified for the Players Tour Championship 2012/2013 – Finals, Finals. Day struggled in the second half of the season as he failed to qualify for four of the remaining five ranking events, losing 2–5 in the first round of the 2013 World Open (snooker), World Open to Mark Allen (snooker player), Mark Allen in the one he did reach. He failed to qualify for the World Championship for the first time since 2006, narrowly losing to Ben Woollaston 9–10 in the fourth and final qualifying round. He finished the season ranked world number 31.

2013/2014 season

Day was beaten in the second round once and first round three times in the opening four ranking events of the 2013–14 snooker season, 2013–14 season, but then reached the quarter-finals for the first time in over a year at the 2013 International Championship, International Championship. Day won the first frame against Joe Perry (snooker player), Joe Perry but was thrashed 6–1. He went a stage further at the 2014 German Masters, German Masters and, in an attempt to play in his first ranking final since 2008, he came from 3–5 down against Ding Junhui to level the match, but lost the deciding frame. A trio of second round losses and a first round defeat in the 2014 China Open (snooker), China Open followed. At the 2014 World Snooker Championship, World Championship, Stephen Maguire levelled the scores from 4–8 and 6–9 down in the first round, but Day won the final frame for a final score of 10–9, and advanced to the second round. His season then ended when he lost 7–13 to Judd Trump, but he did increase his ranking by 10 places to world number 21, his highest finish for four years.

2014/2015 season

For the second season in a row Day qualified for every ranking event. A pair of last 16 defeats at the 2014 Wuxi Classic, Wuxi Classic and 2014 Shanghai Masters (snooker), Shanghai Masters proved to be his best results in the first half of the year. At the Asian Tour 2014/2015 – Event 2, Haining City Open he achieved his first official maximum break in his last 32 match against Cao Yupeng. Day would go on to reach the quarter-finals, but lost 2–4 to Oliver Lines. After Day won the final two frames of his first round match against world number one Ding Junhui at the 2015 German Masters, German Masters to eliminate him 5–4, he said that he was working on his consistency to get back into the highest echelons of the game. He then beat Alfie Burden 5–2 to face Liang Wenbo in Day's only quarter-final appearance of the season and was narrowly beaten 5–4. In Day's home event, he suffered a surprise 1–4 loss to amateur Oliver Brown (snooker player), Oliver Brown in the second round of the 2015 Welsh Open (snooker), Welsh Open. Day was 3–1 ahead of Mark Allen (snooker player), Mark Allen in the first round of the 2015 World Snooker Championship, World Championship, but then lost nine successive frames to be knocked out 10–3.

2015/2016 season

Day lost 4–5 to Ding Junhui in the second round of the 2015 Shanghai Masters, Shanghai Masters, but turned the tables at the same stage of the 2015 International Championship, International Championship by beating him 6–5. Day was defeated 4–6 by David Gilbert (snooker player), David Gilbert in the following round. However, in his next event he whitewashed Mark Selby 4–0 in the quarter-finals of the European Tour 2015/2016 – Event 4, Bulgarian Open and beat Sam Baird 4–2 to play in the final of an event carrying ranking points for the first time since 2008, but he was thrashed 4–0 by Mark Allen (snooker player), Mark Allen. He lost 2–6 to Dechawat Poomjaeng in the second round of the 2015 UK Championship, UK Championship, but knocked out reigning world champion Stuart Bingham 5–3 to reach the quarter-finals of the 2016 German Masters, German Masters. Day lost the final three frames against Kyren Wilson to be eliminated 4–5. He made two centuries and won the deciding frame on the final black against John Higgins to make another quarter-final at the 2016 World Grand Prix, World Grand Prix. He was defeated 2–4 by Bingham, losing the final frame from 56–0 points up, after Bingham made a 64 break. After being defeated 3–10 by Higgins in the opening round of the 2016 World Snooker Championship, World Championship, Day said he would be working on his fitness in the off season in an attempt to improve his concentration during matches.

2016/2017 season

Day advanced to the quarter-final stage of the 2016 Shanghai Masters, Shanghai Masters by overcoming Neil Robertson and Mei Xiwen, both 5–2, before losing 3–5 to Mark Selby. He won the first four frames against Mark Allen (snooker player), Mark Allen in the third round of the 2016 UK Championship, UK Championship, but went on to lose 6–5. His second quarter-final of the season came at the 2017 German Masters, German Masters and he was defeated 2–5 by Martin Gould. At the 2017 World Grand Prix, World Grand Prix, Day overcame Stuart Bingham, Michael White (snooker player), Michael White and Shaun Murphy all 4–2. In the semi-finals he was 3–4 down to Marco Fu, but recovered from needing four snookers in the eighth frame to level and went on to win 6–4. In Day's first ranking event final since 2008 he was 9–3 behind Barry Hawkins and, though he pulled it back to 9–7, he was defeated 7–10. Day lost in the final of the non-ranking 2017 Championship League, Championship League 0–3 to John Higgins. A 4–2 win over Neil Robertson saw Day play in the semi-finals of the 2017 Gibraltar Open, Gibraltar Open and he was beaten 4–2 by Judd Trump after leading 2–0. Day was a seeded player for the 2017 World Snooker Championship, World Championship, but lost 4–10 Xiao Guodong in the first round and once again blamed his lack of concentration for the early exit.

2017/2018 season

Day finally clinched his maiden ranking title in his fifth final appearance. The Welshman defeated Stephen Maguire 5–2 to claim the Riga Masters title. The Welshman sensationally stormed to consecutive titles at the 2018 Gibraltar Open and the 2018 Romanian Masters. He defeated Cao Yupeng and Stuart Bingham in the respective finals. Day reached the semi-final in the UK Championship, this was his first appearance in the semi-finals of a Triple Crown (snooker), Triple Crown event, but he lost 3–6 to Shaun Murphy in the semi-final. Day also made a return to the Masters (snooker), Masters for the first time since 2010. He beat Ding Junhui 6–4 in the first round, but lost 1–6 to John Higgins in the quarter final.

2018/2019 season

In the Gibraltar Open, Day reached the final again by beating Lukas Kleckers, Noppon Saengkham, Elliot Slessor, David Grace (snooker player), David Grace, David Gilbert (snooker player), David Gilbert, and Lu Ning. But he was unable to defend the title as he lost 1–4 to Stuart Bingham in the final. Day qualified for the Masters again this season. He knocked John Higgins out in the first round, winning by 6–5. But he was defeated by Ronnie O'Sullivan in the next round, losing 3–6.

2020/2021 season

Day secured his third ranking title by beating Mark Selby in the final of the 2021 Snooker Shoot Out, Shoot Out. In April 2021, he failed to qualify for the 2021 World Snooker Championship, World Snooker Championship after losing 5–10 to Ricky Walden in the final qualifying round.

Personal life

Day married his stepmother's sister, Lynsey, in the summer of 2008. The couple have two daughters, Francesca, born in 2006 and Lauren, in 2010. His younger brother Rhys Day, Rhys played football (soccer), football for Mansfield Town F.C., Mansfield Town amongst others and played in Wales' under-21 side.

Performance and rankings timeline

Career finals

Ranking finals: 9 (4 titles)

Minor-ranking finals: 1

Non-ranking finals: 6 (2 titles)

Pro-am finals: 9 (5 titles)

Team finals: 1 (1 title)

Amateur finals: 2 (1 title)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Day, Ryan Welsh snooker players People from Pontycymer Sportspeople from Bridgend County Borough 1980 births Living people